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Abstract
The endothelial cell is thought to arise from the splanchnopleuric mesoderm. The endothelial cells form the inner lining of a blood vessel and provide an anticoagulant barrier between the vessel wall and blood. In addition to its role as a selective permeability barrier, the endothelial cell is a unique multifunctional cell with critical basal and inducible metabolic and synthetic functions. The endothelial cell reacts with physiological and chemical stimuli within the circulation and regulates hemostasis, vasomotor tone and immune and inflammatory responses. In addition, the endothelial cell is pivotal in angiogenesis and vasculogenesis.
An understanding of hemostatic functions of vascular endothelium is important to evaluate the pathogenesis of endothelium perturbation and its role in the development of vascular disease. It is currently believed that endothelium must remain in resting or unperturbed state to optimize expression of anticoagulant activities which prevent thrombus formation. Plasma factors such as antibodies or lipoproteins that perturb EC function in vitro have been identified. It is clear that ECs rapidly undergo some of biochemical and phenotypic changes soon after being placed in culture, as a consequence of which the behavior of the unperturbed endothelium cannot be reliable inferred from currently available in vitro techniques.